effectivelywildfandomcom-20200215-history
Episode 178: Batter-Pitcher Matchups/Outfield Alignments/A Player Who Can’t Play Defense/The End of Innings
Date April 10, 2013 Summary Ben and Sam answer listener emails about batter-pitcher matchups, curious outfield alignments, where to put a player who can’t play defense, and what baseball would be like without innings. Topics * Hypothetical - Baseball without innings * Batter-pitcher matchups * Outfield alignment * Hypothetical - Player without defense Intro George Carlin stand up sound clip Banter Sam says that he and Ben have 'fixed the Astros' since they have had a strong game after being discussed in Episode 177. Email Questions * Luke: "Currently, teams take turns hitting and pitching and alternate offense and defense after three outs are recorded. Instead of alternating at the end of each inning and half inning, what if teams only alternated offense and defense once? Teams in the field would be required to record 27 outs before they are able to go into the dugout and get their turn at the plate. Then the home team would come to bat and record 27 outs at the plate. What do you think the implications of this rule change would be?" * Colby: "Small sample sizes are the talk of the early season but we continue to use them all season in matchup vs. pitcher stats. How many ABs against a single pitcher would it take before that stat is meaningful, especially how many ABs is ideal to start making conclusions?" * Zachary: "Imagine that you are the manager of a NL team that possesses a player with Bonds-ian or Ruth-ian ability at the plate. Every time this player comes up to bat you are virtually assured that this player will cause damage, but there is a catch. The player is completely incapable of playing defense. He cannot catch, throw, or do anything that remotely resembles that of a baseball defender. My question is where would you play this player on the field?" * Nate: "I have a question regarding outfield defensive alignments that's been bugging me. Sometimes you'll see managers feature an outfield lineup one day and they'll later switch that lineup despite featuring the same personnel. For instance on opening day at home, Joe Maddon had Matt Joyce in left field and Sam Fuld in right. On Monday in Texas he put Fuld in left and Joyce in right. I know something like ballpark configuration may influence a manager to leverage his better defender in one corner, depending on the park. Maybe this was what Maddon was up to?" Notes * Sam assumes that the bases would clear after every three outs in Luke's hypothetical. * Who benefits from a tired sport? Sam thinks that the home team would have great benefit since all defenders would be exhausted. Ben says this is true of cricket. * Ben comments that by the time a batter and pitcher have a significant number of matchups, it has been over such a long time that the players are fundamentally different. * Assuming the player can catch a throw, Sam would put the player at first base. Ben assumes that the question means the player does nothing, and he would switch him between left and right field. * Regarding Nate's question, Sam guessed it was depending on the handedness of the pitcher. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 178: Batter-Pitcher Matchups/Outfield Alignments/A Player Who Can’t Play Defense/The End of Innings Category:Email Episodes Category:Episodes